How to check a broker's Saudi CMA licence before you deposit
Ali Almesfer · Reviewed 13 October 2026
Find the legal company named in your client agreement, then search it in the Saudi Capital Market Authority's Financial Market Institutions register. Check its status and permitted activities. For direct Tadawul securities, also check the Saudi Exchange member directory. A trading brand or foreign group licence alone does not establish Saudi authorisation.
This check matters most before sending money. A familiar app name may belong to several legal entities, and the entity contracting with a Saudi resident may be different from the one featured in an advertisement.
CMA authorisation concerns activities in the Saudi capital market. An overseas firm may be regulated elsewhere while serving clients through another entity. Record exactly which company, jurisdiction and service appear in your agreement.
A five-step licence check
Copy the full legal company name from the client agreement, account-opening screen or terms. Record the website and any stated licence number.
Open the CMA's Financial Market Institutions register yourself at cma.gov.sa; search for that exact legal name, including plausible Arabic and English spellings.
Read the entry's activities and notes. The register distinguishes Dealing, Custody, Advising, Arranging and investment-management activities; an entry can also note that work has not commenced.
Match the official website, contact route and company details to the account you would fund. If a caller gives a different domain or payment recipient, verify it through the firm's independently listed contact details.
If the product is a Tadawul-listed share, REIT or sukuk, check the Saudi Exchange member directory and ask the firm to confirm its market-access and custody arrangement.
Save dated copies of the register entry, client agreement and fee schedule. A register match is the start of due diligence, not a guarantee of investment performance or account protection.
What the authorised activities tell you
Register activity
Question for your provider
Dealing
Does this exact company execute the securities order offered to me?
Custody
Which legal entity holds my securities or cash under the agreement?
Advising
Is the offer advice only, or does another company execute and hold assets?
Arranging
Which separately authorised firm actually opens and operates the account?
Investment management
Am I buying a managed service or placing my own market order?
These questions help interpret the register; a short activity label alone is not the full licence scope. Ask the institution and CMA if the proposed service is unclear.
Saudi licence, Exchange membership and foreign regulation
A CMA register entry concerns a named Saudi-authorised institution and its activities. Saudi Exchange membership concerns access to the local market. A foreign regulator's licence applies to the specified foreign company and jurisdiction. None automatically transfers to another group entity.
An international platform accepting a Saudi address does not prove it sells directly held Tadawul securities. It may offer overseas shares or a CFD referencing a Saudi share price. Read the order ticket and product disclosure. If the exact company is absent from the Saudi CMA register, do not describe it as CMA-licensed simply because another regulator supervises it.
Warning signs and what to do if details do not match
The CMA keeps a list of entities not licensed for securities business in the Kingdom, but says the list is not exhaustive. Absence from it does not establish authorisation. An account manager pressing you to transfer to a personal account, a different domain or a different legal name needs independent verification before any payment.
Pause the transfer if the legal entity, permitted activity or payment recipient remains unclear. Use the CMA's official contact channels for a question about Saudi authorisation and the relevant foreign regulator for an overseas licence claim. If you have already sent money, preserve statements, messages and transfer details for the regulator and your bank.
Open the register by entering cma.gov.sa yourself and then follow the institution's contact details from that entry. A search advertisement, licence PDF sent by a salesperson or screenshot may lead to an impersonator. Ask the registered company through its independently obtained channel whether the account link and beneficiary really belong to it.
Keep this record before funding an account
Legal company name and the jurisdiction in the signed agreement.
Dated CMA register result or the named foreign regulator's own register result.
Permitted activity, Exchange member status where relevant, and product ownership type.
Official domain, contact route and account beneficiary name.
Current fees, withdrawals, custody and complaint terms for the exact account entity.
Trace a Tadawul share order through three parties
Suppose an app promises a Saudi-listed share. First identify the contracting company in the account agreement and find its exact CMA entry. Then ask whether that company deals, arranges, advises or holds assets for this specific account. A dealing permission is a different role from an introduction to another institution; a brand may use more than one legal company.
Next find the firm that sends the order to the Saudi Exchange and check the member directory. If the contracting company is not itself a member, ask how the member relationship works and who issues the contract note. Finally read the order ticket: does it describe an exchange share held through the relevant custody chain, or a price-linked CFD supplied by a counterparty?
This three-part check answers a practical question that a licence logo alone cannot: who owes you the service, who reaches the market, and what instrument you receive. Record each name before depositing. This is a hypothetical verification method, not a judgement about any particular broker.
How to interpret a difficult register result
What you see
Next question
Action before funding
Matching group brand, different legal company
Which company signs my agreement?
Verify that exact company and jurisdiction
CMA entry lists Advising or Arranging
Who executes orders and holds assets?
Identify and verify the separate provider
CMA entry has status notes
Has the relevant activity commenced or changed?
Ask CMA or the institution through official contact details
No entry, but a foreign licence is cited
Is the claim only about a foreign entity?
Check that regulator and do not label it CMA-licensed
An absent result may also reflect spelling or a changed legal name. Search reasonable Arabic and English variants, but do not treat a near match as proof. Ask the firm for its legal registration details and confirm them independently.
If you have already transferred money
Save the account agreement, messages, website address, payment instructions and any promises made to you.
Record the bank transfer reference, beneficiary name, date and amount; contact your bank promptly about the transaction.
Use the CMA's official contact route for a Saudi-authorisation claim, or the named foreign regulator for its own licence claim.
Give a concise timeline and copies of the evidence; avoid sending new money to 'unlock' a withdrawal while the entity remains unclear.
A regulator's response may clarify status but does not guarantee recovery. Preserve the records because the bank and relevant authority need the same exact legal names and payment details.
Read the account agreement after the register check
An authorised activity tells you what a named institution may be permitted to do; the agreement tells you what it proposes to do for your account. Check who receives funds, where securities are held, whether another entity executes orders and which party answers a withdrawal or complaint. Those roles can be divided among firms even when the app presents one brand.
Ask for a current tariff that includes dealing, custody, FX and withdrawal costs. If an adviser recommends a product, confirm whether advice is part of the contracted service or a separate introduction. Keep the signed version of the agreement and compare its legal company with the register once more before your first deposit.
Sources and further reading
Primary references checked for this guide. Fees, trading hours and regulatory permissions can change; confirm the current terms before acting.
Is a broker CMA-licensed if its parent company has a licence?+
Do not assume so. Match the exact company in your client agreement to the CMA entry and check its authorised activities. Group branding is not a substitute for the contracting entity's status.
Does a foreign licence let a broker offer direct Tadawul shares?+
A foreign licence does not itself establish Saudi Exchange membership or direct Saudi market access. Check the exchange member directory and the exact instrument offered by the account.
Is a firm safe if it is absent from the CMA warning list?+
No. The CMA says its unlicensed-entities list is not comprehensive. Use the authorised-institutions register and verify the exact company and activities.
Risk warning
Authorisation does not remove market, product or counterparty risk. The status and permitted activities of an institution may change; check the live official register and your current agreement before paying.
Compare brokers available to Saudi residents
These are the international broker cards from our Saudi comparison. None has verified direct Tadawul access or a Saudi CMA licence in that comparison. For Saudi-listed shares, REITs and sukuk, use the official Saudi Exchange member directory and check the member's CMA permissions.
